Thesis (B.S.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1979. / MICROFICHE COPY AVAILABLE IN ARCHIVES AND ENGINEERING. / Includes bibliographical references. / by Suzanne Marie Burzyk. / B.S.

In two-phase flow, the void fraction and its distribution are two major factors describing the characteristic of flow patterns. Better understanding of void fraction distribution in two-phase flow would help improve safety and efficiency in the nuclear industry as the heat transfer process is significantly affected by the void distribution in nuclear reactor fuel bundles. Lift force is proposed to explain the lateral migration of bubbles in the shear flow (Feng & Bolotnov, 2017, Lucas & Tomiyama, 2011, Akio Tomiyama, Tamai, Zun, & Hosokawa, 2002). However, the mechanism of lift force is unclear and the research on lift force is limited.<div><br></div><div>An experimental investigation is performed on the lift force of single bubble in weak linear shear flow field in water. In addition, characteristics of bubble motion including bubble terminal velocity, aspect ratio and oscillation amplitude are studied and comparisons are made with existing models.<br></div><div><br></div><div>It was found that the model proposed by Tomiyama et al. (A. Tomiyama, Celata, Hosokawa, & Yoshida, 2002) has the best prediction of bubble terminal velocity with introduction of a tuning factor in consideration of the asymmetric deformation of bubble. Bubble aspect ratio is found to significantly affect its terminal velocity, and a new model is proposed to best fit the experiment data. It is also observed that the shear rate magnitude has no influence on bubble aspect ratio in this study. Oscillation was observed for all the bubbles in this experiment. Oscillation amplitude scattered widely and it was difficult to correlate it only with the bubble equivalent diameter. In terms of lift force, positive lift coefficient was observed for small size bubbles and transits to negative value with growing size. Due to the high Reynolds number of flow and low viscosity of water, widely scattered data is found in the results. Although the accurate prediction of lift coefficient is difficult to obtain in the experiment, the lift coefficient transition trend is given and agrees with many other research. In addition, this research provides a database for further lift coefficient investigation.<br></div>

The two-phase flow displacement of a viscous fluid by a less viscous one in a confined environment leads to a viscous fingering instability commonly encountered in natural systems, for example, in flows through porous media or pulmonary airways. The classical study of viscous fingering has been conducted in rectangular channels of high aspect ratio (large channel width/height), known as Hele-Shaw channels where a unique, steady symmetric, semi-infinite bubble (finger) emerges. In this Journal Format thesis, the propagation of semi-infinite (open) and finite (closed) air bubbles is considered in Hele-Shaw channels where thin, axially-uniform occlusions are introduced. This configuration is known to generate symmetric, asymmetric and oscillatory modes with complex interactions and rich behaviour. Numerical results of finger propagation using a depth-averaged model in these constricted channels are found to be in quantitative agreement with experimental results once the aspect ratio reaches a value of $\alpha\geq40$ and capillary numbers below $Ca\leq 0.012$. The same evolution of the bifurcation scenario between multiple modes is found, however, it occurs for decreasing values of occlusion height as the value of aspect ratio is increased that the system exhibits sensitivity to small but finite depth-variations. The numerical simulations reveal multiple-tipped unstable symmetric solutions which interact with the single symmetric mode at vanishing occlusion heights resulting in stabilisation of the asymmetric and oscillatory modes. Moreover, deviations from the single symmetric mode are predicted when depth-variations of order of the roughness of the channel walls ($\sim 1$ $\mu$m) are introduced for larger aspect ratios of $\alpha\geq 155$. The propagation of finite bubbles is studied in a channel with constant aspect ratio of $\alpha=30$ and where the height of the occlusion, termed rail, is $1/40$ of the channel height. For bubble diameters of the order of the rail width, a tongue-shaped stability boundary for symmetric (on-rail) propagation is encountered so that for flow rates marginally larger than a critical value, a narrow band of bubble sizes can propagate (stably) over the rail while bubbles of other sizes segregate to the side of the rail. The numerical depth-averaged model is adapted for bubble propagation and captures in qualitative agreement the experimental observations. Time-dependent calculations are additionally performed, showing that on-rail bubble propagation is the result of a non-trivial dynamical interaction between capillary and viscous forces.

The groundwater specialists and the reservoir engineers share the same interest in simulating multiphase flow in soil with heterogeneous intrinsic properties. They also both face the challenge of going from a well-modeled micrometer scale to the reservoir scale with a controlled loss of information. This upscaling process is indeed worthy to make simulation over an entire reservoir manageable and stochastically repeatable. Two upscaling steps can be defined: one from the micrometer scale to the Darcy scale, and another from the Darcy scale to the reservoir scale. In this thesis, a new second upscaling multiscale algorithm Finite Volume Mixed Hybrid Multiscale Methods (Fv-MHMM) is investigated. Extension to a two-phase flow system is done by weakly and sequentially coupling saturation and pressure via IMPES-like method.

Submerged flat sheet membranes are mostly used in membrane bioreactors for wastewater treatment. The major problems for these modules are concentration polarization and subsequent fouling. By using gas-liquid two-phase flow, these problems can be ameliorated. This thesis aimed to optimize the use of gas-liquid two-phase flow as a cleaning mechanism for submerged flat sheet membrane. The effect of various hydrodynamic factors such as airflow rate, nozzle size, nozzle geometry, intermittent bubbling, intermittent filtration, channel gap width, feed concentration and membrane baffles were investigated for model feed materials (yeast suspensions and mixed liquor from activated sludge plants). Insights into mechanisms by which two-phase flow reduces fouling for submerged flat sheet membranes were obtained by using Computational Fluid Dynamics. Experiments conducted showed that an optimal airflow rate exists beyond which no further flux enhancement was achieved. Fouling reduction increased with nozzle size at constant airflow. Nozzles of equal surface area but different geometries performed differently in terms of fouling reduction. Bubble size distribution analyses revealed that the percentage of larger bubbles and bubble rise velocities increased with the airflow rate and nozzle size. Thus the results of this study suggest that the effectiveness of two-phase flow depends on the bubble size. CFD simulations revealed that average shear stress on the membrane increased with airflow rate and bubble size and further indicated that an optimal bubble size possible exists. Using intermittent filtration as an operating strategy was found to be more beneficial than continuous filtration. This study also showed the importance of the size of the gap between the submerged flat sheet membranes. Increasing the gap from 7 mm to 14 mm resulted in an increase in fouling by about 40% based on the rate of increase in suction pressure (dTMP/dt). Finally, this is the first study which investigated the effect of baffles in improving air distribution across a submerged flat sheet membrane. It was found that baffles decreased the rate of fouling at least by a factor of 3.0 based on the dTMP/dt data.

One microfilm reel (16 mm.) in pocket / Bibliography: leaves 194-201 / xiii, 212, 6 leaves, [9] leaves of plates : ill. (some col.) ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, 1987

The subject of this thesis is the development of an accurate, general and robust numerical method capable of predicting the flow behavior of two-phase immiscible fluids, separated by a well defined interface. In the quest of an accurate and robust numerical method for the modeling of two-phase flows, one has to keep in mind the intrinsic properties and difficulties associated with the problem: (i) those flows are mostly three-dimensional, (ii) some flows are steady, others unsteady, (iii) the interface might encounter a lot of topology changes (like merger or break-up), (iv) large jumps of density and viscosity might exist across the interface (e.g. ratio of density of 1/1000 for water and air), (v) surface tension forces may play a very important role in the interface dynamics. Hence, the influence of this force should be accurately evaluated and incorporated into the model, (vi) mass conservation is of primary importance. All these issues are addressed in this thesis, and special techniques are proposed for their treatment, which enables to construct the desired computational method. The chosen computational method combines a pressure stabilized finite element method for the Navier Stokes equations with a discontinuous Galerkin (DG) method for the level set equation. Such a combination of those two numerical methods results in a simple and effective algorithm that allows to simulate diverse flow regimes presenting large density and viscosity ratios (ratio up to 1/1000).

Knowledge of the two-phase flow state is fundamental for two-phase flow system design and operation. In traditional two-phase flow studies, the flow regime refers to the physical location of the gas and liquid in a conduit. Flow configuration is important for engineering correlations of heat and mass transfer, pressure drop, and wall shear. However, it is somewhat subjective since it is mostly defined by experimental observation, resulting in an approximate and equivocal definition. Thus, there is need for a better, objective flow regime identification. The void fraction is a key parameter in monitoring the operating state of a two-phase system and several tools have been developed in order to measure it. The purpose of this study is to use the void fraction and other parameters of the system to achieve a model for flow pattern identification. Recently, an experimental program using the Foster-Miller two-phase flow test bed and Creare Inc. capacitance void fraction sensors was conducted in the microgravity environment of the NASA KC-135 aircraft. Several data types were taken for each phase, such as flow rate, superficial velocity, density and transient void fraction at 100Hz. Several analytical approaches were pursued, including a statistical approach of the fluctuation of the void fraction, Martinelli analysis, and Drift Flux analysis, in order to reach a model for flow pattern identification in microgravity conditions. Several parameters were found to be good flow pattern identifiers such as the statistical moments variance and skewness, Signal -to- noise ratio (SNR), Half Height Value (HHV) and Linear Area Difference (LAD). Moreover, relevant conclusions were achieved using the Martinelli parameter and the Drift Flux model in microgravity conditions. These results were compared with the basic literature.

This thesis is concerned with the speed control of a brushless DC (BLDC) fan motor by switching its coil currents. Because fans are the most common cooling devices for computers, the demand for a quit and efficient fan that is capable of automatically regulating its speed according to temperature grows with each passing day. A mixed linear and switching control scheme which consists of two loop of feedback compensation for a two-phase BLDC fan motor is presented. Roughly speaking, the linear outer loop is mainly for speed regulation, and the inner loop is to generate a switching control signal while doing plant compensation. This control structure is simple and effective, emphasizing on low power consumption, accurate velocity regulation and low switching noise. The performance and stability requirement can be easily met by tuning several positive coefficients in the controller. The experiment shows an average steady-state regulation error of 0.563% in the range of fan¡¦s speed from 1050 to 2231 r.p.m.

As the operating conditions of the pressurized water reactor (PWR) have been increased towards the thermal limits of the core for economics, the subcooled boiling heat transfer performance of the rod bundles under normal operating conditions has become an increasingly important design focus. Effective field models such as two-fluid model, on which most previous numerical studies in the nuclear fields have focused, cannot predict detailed phenomenon of subcooled boiling because it involves complex multiphase dynamics, such as nucleation, growth, detachment bubbles from a wall, deformation, break-up, coalescence, and condensation. It also requires numerous, additional closure relations. On the other hand, direct numerical simulations with interfacial tracking enable us to capture specific two-phase flow and do not require additional empirical closure relations. In this thesis, we simulate isothermal, two-dimensional bubble dynamics as a starting point toward direct simulation of the subcooled boiling. We adopt a lattice Boltzmann method with the phase-field model. The lattice Boltzmann method is a mesoscopic approach well-adapted to the simulation of complex fluids and is simple to implement. The phase field model can capture complex topological deformation, such as coalescence and break-up, with better numerical stability than other interfacial tracking methods like Volume of Fluid (VOF) and level set methods. We validate the present method for stationary and moving two-phase interfaces by comparing with theoretical solutions for a single static bubble in a stationary liquid and a capillary wave, respectively. In addition, the capability of the current method to simulate the coalescence of two bubbles and droplets is validated by comparing with experimental data. To see the applicability of the method to problems involving complex bubble behaviors and interactions with a high-density ratio as in subcooled boiling water, we simulate rising single and double bubbles in a viscous fluid. For a single bubble problem, the bubble shapes and terminal velocity agreed well with the experimental results for different fluid dynamic conditions. For a double bubble case, the current method can capture the interaction and dynamics of the bubbles. Thus, it is expected that this study can serve as a stepping-stone extension to convective subcooled boiling heat transfer in the nuclear reactor core.